Permanent Representative of Kazakhstan to the UN, Kairat Umarov, noted unprecedented positive changes in the Horn of Africa region, including Eritrea, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Somalia. In June of this year, the world witnessed a historic reconciliation between Eritrea and Ethiopia, whose leaders showed political will and put an end to a 20-year confrontation that took the lives of over 80,000 people.

This event entailed a rapprochement and the first high-level contacts between Eritrea and Djibouti, which for 10 years were also separated by territorial conflict. In addition to bilateral agreements, Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia agreed to establish closer political, economic, social, cultural ties and coordinate their efforts to promote regional peace, security and development.

In his speech at the UN Security Council meeting, K. Umarov stressed that the countries of the Horn of Africa demonstrated a strong commitment and ability to find solutions for regional problems. It is important that the international community support the positive changes taking place in the region.

“Peace in the region was the result of courageous choices made by regional leaders. It marks the end of an era of protracted tensions, conflicts and competition, and paves the way for a new era of peaceful and mutually beneficial cooperation, ”the ambassador of Kazakhstan said.

“Diplomacy, mediation, confidence building and dialogue, together with investment in development, are reliable means of resolving existing disputes between countries. We welcome the interaction between Djibouti and Eritrea and encourage them to make further efforts to resolve the remaining problems in their bilateral relations, ”said Umarov.

Kazakhstan voted to adopt a resolution on the lifting of sanctions against Eritrea, guided by its commitment to establishing peace and security in Africa. This direction of our country's work in the Security Council is one of the 7 priorities identified by President Nursultan Nazarbayev in his political address to the UN Security Council.

As Chairman of the UN Security Council Sanctions Committee on Somalia and Eritrea, Kazakhstan made a significant contribution to the decision of the Council members to lift the sanctions on Eritrea. Years of international isolation of Eritrea ended with the first contacts of officials of this country with the chairman of the sanctions Committee in September and October of this year in New York. Kazakhstan’s efforts to establish cooperation with Eritrea have become important prerequisites for the completion of the 9-year sanctions regime against this country.

The results of the work of the Kazakhstan delegation at the head of the sanctions committee have been recognized and appreciated by members of the Security Council. During the meeting, the representatives of Eritrea and Djibouti also expressed gratitude to Kazakhstan for the full assistance to the establishment of sustainable peace in the region.

Sanctions against Eritrea were introduced in 2009.

The resolution adopted by the UN Security Council includes the lifting of the arms embargo, the travel ban, the freezing of assets, and the lifting of targeted sanctions.